The Kirksville Arts Association’s mission is to bring the arts to northeast Missouri and help the community make a connection with it in various forms.

In an effort to further that connection, the Association will soon call on the community to take part in an art project, one that will be presented in grand fashion, on the front of the Kirksville Arts Association building in downtown Kirksville.

Work will begin March 1 on what will eventually become a new, tile-based mural around the building’s entrance. Through funding from The Freeman Foundation, a non-profit organization that has supported other local projects such as the sculptures at the Adair County Public Library and the Ruth W. Towne Museum and Visitors Center, artist Connie Greany has been commissioned to create a “mosaic of tiles depicting local landmarks,” said KAA Board Secretary and mural project co-chair Karen Mayhew.

“We want to make the mural as much Kirksville as possible,” Mayhew said.

The tiles will be painted and arranged to create images of Greany’s design around a theme of “The heART of Kirksville.” But the tiles themselves will be shaped and designed by anyone who wants to take part in what is intended to become a downtown attraction.

“This is not just a program for certain people,” Mayhew said. “Art is for everybody.”

The KAA is partnering with Kirksville public and private schools, various organizations and service clubs, in addition to hosting a make-a-tile day for all on March 21 between 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

The organization requests notification by March 1 for those who want to participate.

Greany, currently of Wisconsin, said this is the kind of project she enjoys.

“I like to work with groups and network with different age groups in particular,” she said. “It gives an overall community feeling.”

She is currently in the process of taking images of local Kirksville landmarks and landscapes and “simplifying them so they will work with the clay.” She said more than 1,000 different tiles will be needed to create the mural.

Greany has done “legacy murals” at several schools and churches. She also does pottery and sculptural clay work.

“My underlying theme is I like to teach values with clay. One of the interlocking values is that for the young people, that the choices they make do affect other people, even the little choices,” she said.

Page 2 of 2 - Those choices are like the tiles themselves, and each piece plays a role in the overall design. While the tiles can contain personal messages, designs or organization logos, the goal, she said, is for the mural to be a positive reflection of the community, down to each piece.

Demolition of the current awning and tile work will take place March 1 and tile creation will happen during the week of March 18. The actual building of the mural is slated for the week of March 25, with a celebration scheduled for April 5.

For more information or to learn how to participate, contact the Kirksville Arts Association at (660) 665-0500, or email at kvarts@sbcglobal.net.